Performer guarantees prediction at COD show
Until they see the news stories, even the Daily Herald copy editors who write the headlines can't predict what the next day's headlines will be, let alone next month's headlines.
But Mike Super said he's done just that and he plans to do it again March 4 when he appears at the McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage.
He's even betting some bucks on his own prescient powers. If he's wrong, he said he will personally refund the price of each ticket purchased before the show date, paid from the $250,000 prize he was awarded in 2007 when he was named winner of the NBC TV show "Phenomenon."
"I don't do this at every show. NBC only lets me do it about eight times a year," he said. "I haven't missed yet. I feel pretty good about it. So, we'll see."
In early February, Super said, he wrote down his prediction for a March 4 Daily Herald headline, sealed it in a FedEx package and sent it off to Diana Martinez, the MAC's executive director.
He said he also wrote down "the subject matter of another thing" that will appear on the front page that day.
"I will never touch it again. No member of my crew will touch it," he said. "I've had editors think I was paying someone on the inside. This is completely legit. It's a little nerve-wracking for me."
Martinez said elaborate steps are being taken to guard the prediction package from prying eyes.
She said the package will be stored in a Daily Herald newspaper vending machine secured with chains and locks and placed inside the MAC, under constant video surveillance.
The box will be unlocked by the chief of campus police the night of Super's performance, she said. Daily Herald Vice President Eileen Brown will join Martinez and Super on stage, she said, and COD President Ann Rondeau also may attend.
The illusionist/magician/mentalist, who prefers to call himself a "mystifier" to avoid a narrow definition of his skill set, performed at the MAC a little more than a year ago, Martinez said.
"His energy is so fun. He's like half illusionist, half mentalist - and a comedian," she said. "His show is good for a diversity of ages. He has such a great appeal to such a wide group of people. He's pretty magical."
Super was a Season 9 finalist on NBC's "America's Got Talent" in 2014, where he appeared to teleport himself across a packed auditorium. He also correctly predicted Howard Stern's choice of symbol from a deck of cards and appeared to read Howie Mandel's mind.
At his upcoming MAC show, dubbed "Mike Super 2.OH!," he said audiences can look forward to a Powerball prediction and more.
"We're going to levitate somebody from the audience. All of the magic I do is unrehearsed," he said. "We're going to make somebody disappear for three minutes. We have magic that happens in their hands, on their cellphone screens."
He also said he will introduce the audience to Desmond, the imaginary friend he dreamed up after a childhood visit to The Haunted Mansion ride at Disney World, where his parents had to coax him away from the magic shop to go on the other rides.
"Everybody loves it when I bring Desmond into the picture," he said.
Super said he keeps up a demanding show schedule that has him traveling frequently to places such as Disney World and entertaining on Disney cruises.
"I work a lot for Disney now, which is a great honor," he said.
Super and his wife have two daughters, ages 3 and 7.
"Only now are they realizing their dad has a different job than a lot of dads do," he said. "It's really cute when you see your daughter sort of star struck or proud."
Super said his show is family-friendly and safe for all ages.
"It gets your mind off all the problems going on in the world right now," he said. "I really like to make people laugh."
If you go
What: "Mike Super 2.OH!" performance by Mike Super
Where: Belushi Performance Hall, McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage, 425 Fawell Boulevard, Glen Ellyn
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 4
Tickets: $46 to $55; $150 seats include a pre-show meet-and-greet
Info: (630) 942-4000, atthemac.org or mikesuper.com